day thirty-eight: enjoy family fun films together—our ten favorite “oldie goldie” non-animated disney movies

Now that I have ranted about the perils of too much television—less reading, fewer homework assignments completed, diminished relationships, shortened attention spans, less intimacy (!), and more—I am ready to suggest that you enjoy watching things together! When you have “purposeful viewing,” times in which family members sit down and watch something because it was planned and intentional, as opposed to having the television on day and night, families can have great fun together.

Different family members here enjoy different types of movies. Ray, believe it or not, is a romantic comedy guy. I enjoy romantic comedies, but also love action and mystery movies. The guys like some sci-fi and classics. Three of our kids love many genres of movies—and sound like attendees of a Roger Ebert convention for weeks after going to a new release.

However, one thing that we all agree on is that there are some outstanding “oldie goldie” non-animated Disney movies. Specifically, we have a list of our family’s favorite ten that I would like to share with you. Whether you are the G-rated only kind of family, a crew of two year olds to twenty year olds, or a conoisseur of fine films, I think you, too, would enjoy the movies in this list.

So…pull the television out of the closet or uncover it in the corner of the living room (!), and enjoy our Top Ten Non-Animated Disney Oldie Goldies!

1. No Deposit, No Return (1976)—Two children at boarding school ransom themselves to safe crackers (one of whom is Don Knotts) to try to get the attention of their wealthy grandfather. Funny, clean, clever, and, what can I say, Don Knotts.

2. Pollyanna (1960)—Who doesn’t love Pollyanna? This original version is the one we love the most, with Hayley Mills, Jane Wyman, Karl Malden, and Richard Egan. It is so heartwarming—and extremely quoteable!

3. That Darn Cat (1965)—A story about bank robbers, a kidnapping, and a mischievous cat, starring Hayley Mills (from Pollyanna, a few years older now) and Dean Jones. The new one in the nineties just didn’t come close to this one!

4. The Parent Trap (1961)—Hayley Mills again, joined by “Uncle Bill” from Family Affair (Brian Keith). This is such a sweet movie (though we actually did love the remake of this several years ago)—and, of course, is where we all get the phrase “Let’s get together, yeah, yeah, yeah!”

5. The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969)—The first film in a trilogy of movies about Medfield College, this one stars Kurt Russell as a college student who becomes a “human computer” and saves the college from ruin (and from a bad guy who, of course, wants to build something else on the college grounds. It’s very late-sixties-ish, but it’s still great fun.

6. Now You See Him, Now You Don’t (1962)—The second of the Medford College series, again starring Kurt Russell as Dexter Reilly and Cesar Romero as the “bad guy.” This time, instead of becoming a computer, Russell becomes invisible through a science experiment with chemicals that went awry.

7. Swiss Family Robinson (1960)—No other version or spin-off of this that I have seen has come close to this one! When Francis gets his tiger, you just want to jump up and down and cheer!

8. Toby Tyler (1960)—This has the same little boy who played Francis in the aforementioned Swiss Family. He is a cutie! Here, a little boy joins the circus because he thinks his aunt and uncle do not want him. He gets into lots of mischief, gets tricked, learns some new skills, and more. We also enjoyed reading this book aloud a few years ago.

9. Gone Are the Dayes (1984)—This wacky comedy-melodrama was created for a Disney Channel original movie, but we thought it was great fun, nonetheless. (We tend to not enjoy made-for-tv type movies too much, but this didn’t have that feel to it.) While dining out at a Japanese restaurant, the Daye family witnesses a gangland slaying. Federal agent Mitchell persuades the Daye parents to serve as witnesses in the upcoming trial of the gang boss who ordered the hit. Mitchell then puts everyone in protective custody, a decision he comes to regret when he's forced to baby-sit the Dayes' unruly teenaged kids.

10. Davy Crockett (1955)—This was one of my guys’ favorites when they were little, starring Fess Parker and Buddy Ebsen. They can still sing a lot of the song—and every once in a while, we pull out the vcr and re-watch it. (Not sure if it’s available on dvd or not.)

Pop some corn. Slice some apples. Cut up some cheese. Have a family fun movie night!